Mongoose Publishing is proud to announce the acquisition of the licence to produce the all new Babylon 5 roleplaying game from Warner Brothers Inc.
This is a project we are all very excited about here at Mongoose, for we are all great fans of the television series and its many spin-offs – without a doubt, Babylon 5 is the greatest science fiction epic yet created. In many ways, the television series seems almost designed for roleplaying scenarios and campaigns, and we are putting all our efforts into ensuring the new game lives up to the milestone set by the licence.
The Babylon 5 roleplaying game will be available in the latter part of May 2003 and, like other Mongoose Publishing games, will be heavily supported with material guaranteed to delight any serious fan of the show.
Right, that is the official part out of the way! Gamers have been talking about Babylon 5 RPGs for a long time now and so, naturally, people will have a lot of questions – I’ll try to answer a few anticipated queries here. . .
You will support the new B5 RPG, right? It won’t just die?
In a word, no. If you are familiar with our Judge Dredd and Slaine roleplaying games, you will know how serious we are about supporting them, and no fan of B5 will have to wait long for new material after the release of the main rulebook. In fact, many of the forthcoming supplements have been written alongside the main rulebook in order to ensure maximum compatibility, continuity and game balance. There is really too much to list here but rest assured, we have plans to cover the Minbari, Centauri, Narns and Earth Alliance in great detail, epic campaigns, the technology of different races, politics of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds and oodles more. Yes, we will also cover the Vorlons and Shadows – but not right away! We will make sure the Babylon 5 RPG is well supported – what happens next is up to you guys!
I hate D20. Please don’t do it.
Well, it will have the d20 logo on the cover! Seriously, we are well aware that two camps have firmly entrenched themselves over the rules system to be used in a new Babylon 5 RPG. There are those who believe the d20 System, properly handled, will be just perfect. And then there are the others who. . . don’t. The new Babylon 5 RPG will be d20 – just not as you know it. We are firm believers that a games system should be bent to fit the genre, never the other way round. I can tell you now that there is no Armour Class in the game (though players of Judge Dredd could probably have guessed that!). Combat will be utterly _lethal_ on the station. Jeffery Sinclair may be an 8th level Officer (correct at time of writing!) but he only has 22 hit points – a couple of PPG shots is all it would take to send him straight to Medlab as an emergency case. . . Rules for Starfuries, Raiders and Minbari warcruisers are already in place (and the Minbari are _deadly_!). In a nutshell, we have completely disassembled the d20 System and built it back up, brick by brick. If we found something that didn’t fit, we replaced it, or chucked it out altogether. When something worked, it stayed. If you have seen our previous books, you will be aware of how willing we are to bend and mutate the d20 rules to fit what we are trying to achieve. All I can say is, you ain’t seen nothing yet – Babylon 5 will _not_ be D&D in space. It will be its own game that just happens to use twenty-sided dice. . .
An 8th Level Officer? Why not go for a classless/level-less system?
The original draft of the new B5 RPG did just this. However, the archetypes in the TV show are so strong (think Rangers, Psi Cops, etc. . .) that they lend themselves naturally to a class based rules set. Once that was in place, levels followed on rather neatly, especially after we changed a few more of the standard d20 rules. What this means is that high level characters in the B5 RPG are certainly more capable than less experienced personalities – but, say, an 8th level officer can still be brought low by a 1st level character, either in combat or diplomatic manoeuvring. A bit like real life, really. . . Playing the new B5 RPG is a _vastly_ different experience from playing any other d20 System game we have tried – it has its own unique flavour that is most definitely Babylon 5.
Are the Psionics Handbook rules being used for Telepaths?
Definitely not. There is nothing wrong with those rules (they worked well for Judge Dredd) but Babylon 5 requires something of its own. We’ll preview this at a later date but basically, the new telepath rules revolve around skills, a few feats and the all-encompassing P-Rating.
So, what happened to the B5 Wars licence?
Nothing to do with us, I promise you. Yes, I have heard the rumours that the company who acquired the B5 RPG licence paid massive amounts of money to end the B5 Wars licence. Not true. In fact, the news came as much as a surprise to us – I had already partitioned off a section of the rulebook to, potentially, serve as a conversion mechanism between B5 Wars and the spaceship combat system we have in the RPG, so players could use whichever they preferred. I personally view it as a great shame, as Mongoose and Agents of Gaming could perhaps have done great things together – but some things are not to be. For our part, we believe AoG set a standard of fidelity to source material that must be matched if the Babylon 5 RPG is to be worthy of the name. We appreciate the chance to pick up the flag and carry it further onwards. We have also been in communication with the chaps behind AoG and are very proud to have Bruce Graw writing a few of the forthcoming B5 supplements.
Say what you like about Babylon 5, but it always seems to endure. B5 projects have been declared dead more times than Lazarus. . .
Did you know there was another B5 RPG?
Indeed – I bought all the books as they came out. Again, another great shame that nothing further was done (the phrase ‘third time’s a charm’ seems to run through my head these days. . .). Some things we believe we can improve on from that material – other things they nailed right on the head first time round. We are starting the new Babylon 5 RPG from scratch but know when to borrow from the greats. Large arcing story lines and plenty of help for the Games Master to bring them to fruition is definitely in. However, players will be encouraged, rather than dissuaded, to visit the Babylon 5 diplomatic station – even during the timeline of the series. More on that at a later date. . .
What will the rulebook be like?
Over 300 pages in length, hardback, full colour throughout. Packed full of stills from the television series and films. For the rest, well, you will just have to wait for the previews. . .
So, all the players play Earthforce types, right?
Umm, no. In the new Babylon 5 RPG, you can be human. Or a Narn. Centauri, Minbari, one of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds. You can be an Earthforce officer, sure – if you want to play that type of campaign. You could also be smugglers, lurkers, members of the Minbari warrior caste (or worker, or religious), Narn assassins (the Thenta Makur is in the main rulebook!), Centauri diplomats, agents of dark powers. . . The list is endless. What we are providing is a gateway in to the Babylon 5 universe – we are giving you help and guidelines on the sorts of campaigns you can run but we will not be railroading you either. If you want to run an extended diplomatic campaign depicting Centauri politics on their homeworld, you will have all the tools you need to do so. You could all play Psi Cops and track down blips. All the rules are there. You could even play a group of starfarers who just want to see ‘what is out there’, using the Babylon 5 diplomatic station as a base of operations. It is all there.
Will there be any new, never before seen material? Will it actually be part of the Babylon 5 universe?
Yes and yes. Our initial work has been concentrated in representing the television series with the greatest fidelity possible. However, as time goes on, it is inevitable that new ground will be broken as we examine, for example, the innermost workings of the Centauri royal court and Great Houses – this is already in an advanced state of completion. That said, nothing escapes the attention of the Babylon 5 Continuity Editor, Fiona Avery and J. Michael Straczynski himself. The Babylon 5 RPG _will_ be true to the setting.
It is our intention to make the Babylon 5 roleplaying game the closest representation of the television show that is possible. No effort, no expense, and no resource has been or will be spared. This is not just another licence to us – this is a licence we worked extremely hard to acquire because we wanted it and knew we could do it justice. Over the next few years, we will be doing everything in our power to ensure that this game is the best resource for the Babylon 5 universe yet seen.
Be seeing you,
This is a project we are all very excited about here at Mongoose, for we are all great fans of the television series and its many spin-offs – without a doubt, Babylon 5 is the greatest science fiction epic yet created. In many ways, the television series seems almost designed for roleplaying scenarios and campaigns, and we are putting all our efforts into ensuring the new game lives up to the milestone set by the licence.
The Babylon 5 roleplaying game will be available in the latter part of May 2003 and, like other Mongoose Publishing games, will be heavily supported with material guaranteed to delight any serious fan of the show.
Right, that is the official part out of the way! Gamers have been talking about Babylon 5 RPGs for a long time now and so, naturally, people will have a lot of questions – I’ll try to answer a few anticipated queries here. . .
You will support the new B5 RPG, right? It won’t just die?
In a word, no. If you are familiar with our Judge Dredd and Slaine roleplaying games, you will know how serious we are about supporting them, and no fan of B5 will have to wait long for new material after the release of the main rulebook. In fact, many of the forthcoming supplements have been written alongside the main rulebook in order to ensure maximum compatibility, continuity and game balance. There is really too much to list here but rest assured, we have plans to cover the Minbari, Centauri, Narns and Earth Alliance in great detail, epic campaigns, the technology of different races, politics of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds and oodles more. Yes, we will also cover the Vorlons and Shadows – but not right away! We will make sure the Babylon 5 RPG is well supported – what happens next is up to you guys!
I hate D20. Please don’t do it.
Well, it will have the d20 logo on the cover! Seriously, we are well aware that two camps have firmly entrenched themselves over the rules system to be used in a new Babylon 5 RPG. There are those who believe the d20 System, properly handled, will be just perfect. And then there are the others who. . . don’t. The new Babylon 5 RPG will be d20 – just not as you know it. We are firm believers that a games system should be bent to fit the genre, never the other way round. I can tell you now that there is no Armour Class in the game (though players of Judge Dredd could probably have guessed that!). Combat will be utterly _lethal_ on the station. Jeffery Sinclair may be an 8th level Officer (correct at time of writing!) but he only has 22 hit points – a couple of PPG shots is all it would take to send him straight to Medlab as an emergency case. . . Rules for Starfuries, Raiders and Minbari warcruisers are already in place (and the Minbari are _deadly_!). In a nutshell, we have completely disassembled the d20 System and built it back up, brick by brick. If we found something that didn’t fit, we replaced it, or chucked it out altogether. When something worked, it stayed. If you have seen our previous books, you will be aware of how willing we are to bend and mutate the d20 rules to fit what we are trying to achieve. All I can say is, you ain’t seen nothing yet – Babylon 5 will _not_ be D&D in space. It will be its own game that just happens to use twenty-sided dice. . .
An 8th Level Officer? Why not go for a classless/level-less system?
The original draft of the new B5 RPG did just this. However, the archetypes in the TV show are so strong (think Rangers, Psi Cops, etc. . .) that they lend themselves naturally to a class based rules set. Once that was in place, levels followed on rather neatly, especially after we changed a few more of the standard d20 rules. What this means is that high level characters in the B5 RPG are certainly more capable than less experienced personalities – but, say, an 8th level officer can still be brought low by a 1st level character, either in combat or diplomatic manoeuvring. A bit like real life, really. . . Playing the new B5 RPG is a _vastly_ different experience from playing any other d20 System game we have tried – it has its own unique flavour that is most definitely Babylon 5.
Are the Psionics Handbook rules being used for Telepaths?
Definitely not. There is nothing wrong with those rules (they worked well for Judge Dredd) but Babylon 5 requires something of its own. We’ll preview this at a later date but basically, the new telepath rules revolve around skills, a few feats and the all-encompassing P-Rating.
So, what happened to the B5 Wars licence?
Nothing to do with us, I promise you. Yes, I have heard the rumours that the company who acquired the B5 RPG licence paid massive amounts of money to end the B5 Wars licence. Not true. In fact, the news came as much as a surprise to us – I had already partitioned off a section of the rulebook to, potentially, serve as a conversion mechanism between B5 Wars and the spaceship combat system we have in the RPG, so players could use whichever they preferred. I personally view it as a great shame, as Mongoose and Agents of Gaming could perhaps have done great things together – but some things are not to be. For our part, we believe AoG set a standard of fidelity to source material that must be matched if the Babylon 5 RPG is to be worthy of the name. We appreciate the chance to pick up the flag and carry it further onwards. We have also been in communication with the chaps behind AoG and are very proud to have Bruce Graw writing a few of the forthcoming B5 supplements.
Say what you like about Babylon 5, but it always seems to endure. B5 projects have been declared dead more times than Lazarus. . .
Did you know there was another B5 RPG?
Indeed – I bought all the books as they came out. Again, another great shame that nothing further was done (the phrase ‘third time’s a charm’ seems to run through my head these days. . .). Some things we believe we can improve on from that material – other things they nailed right on the head first time round. We are starting the new Babylon 5 RPG from scratch but know when to borrow from the greats. Large arcing story lines and plenty of help for the Games Master to bring them to fruition is definitely in. However, players will be encouraged, rather than dissuaded, to visit the Babylon 5 diplomatic station – even during the timeline of the series. More on that at a later date. . .
What will the rulebook be like?
Over 300 pages in length, hardback, full colour throughout. Packed full of stills from the television series and films. For the rest, well, you will just have to wait for the previews. . .
So, all the players play Earthforce types, right?
Umm, no. In the new Babylon 5 RPG, you can be human. Or a Narn. Centauri, Minbari, one of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds. You can be an Earthforce officer, sure – if you want to play that type of campaign. You could also be smugglers, lurkers, members of the Minbari warrior caste (or worker, or religious), Narn assassins (the Thenta Makur is in the main rulebook!), Centauri diplomats, agents of dark powers. . . The list is endless. What we are providing is a gateway in to the Babylon 5 universe – we are giving you help and guidelines on the sorts of campaigns you can run but we will not be railroading you either. If you want to run an extended diplomatic campaign depicting Centauri politics on their homeworld, you will have all the tools you need to do so. You could all play Psi Cops and track down blips. All the rules are there. You could even play a group of starfarers who just want to see ‘what is out there’, using the Babylon 5 diplomatic station as a base of operations. It is all there.
Will there be any new, never before seen material? Will it actually be part of the Babylon 5 universe?
Yes and yes. Our initial work has been concentrated in representing the television series with the greatest fidelity possible. However, as time goes on, it is inevitable that new ground will be broken as we examine, for example, the innermost workings of the Centauri royal court and Great Houses – this is already in an advanced state of completion. That said, nothing escapes the attention of the Babylon 5 Continuity Editor, Fiona Avery and J. Michael Straczynski himself. The Babylon 5 RPG _will_ be true to the setting.
It is our intention to make the Babylon 5 roleplaying game the closest representation of the television show that is possible. No effort, no expense, and no resource has been or will be spared. This is not just another licence to us – this is a licence we worked extremely hard to acquire because we wanted it and knew we could do it justice. Over the next few years, we will be doing everything in our power to ensure that this game is the best resource for the Babylon 5 universe yet seen.
Be seeing you,
